Battle of Sorbey

The Battle of Sorbey (10 December 1793) was a battle of the War of the First Coalition during the French Revolutionary Wars, taking place in the commune of Sorbey, eastern France. A French army of 17,000 troops under General Georges-Posthume Lebon decisively defeated a 19,000-strong Austrian army under Franz Bittrich von Mannheim in a battle taking place in the woodlands of Lorraine.

Background
Since 20 September 1792, the Rhine River was the location of several engagements between the forces of the French Revolutionary Army and the armed forces of the Holy Roman Empire and their ally of Prussia. The French were able to hold a steady front here, unlike in the rapidly-changing scenario in Italy and the Austrian Netherlands, although much bloodshed occurred during the French Revolutionary Wars on the Rhineland front. In December 1793, the French Republic founded the Army of the Moselle under the command of general Georges-Posthume Lebon, with 7,200 National Guard militia joining up with 10,000 other French troops to form a fighting force that would defeat the Austro-Prussian army. An army of 19,000+ Austrian troops under Franz Bittrich von Mannheim was dispatched to defeat the French and achieve their goal of taking over German-speaking Alsace and Lorraine. The two armies engaged in eastern France in the commune of Sorbey, now part of the Moselle Department of the Lorraine region.

Dispositions
The French army was mostly made up of National Guard conscripts from eastern France, recently armed and incompletely-trained. However, there were some Young Guard and Old Guard experienced troops, Grenadiers of the Line, and Fusiliers of Line line infantry, in addition to some Cuirassiers and Chasseurs a Cheval for cavalry. The French army positioned two regiments of Fusiliers of Line and one regiment of National Guardsmen on their central flank in a wooded area, where they hid. To the Austrians, it appeared that there was a huge gap in the French center that they could exploit.

The Austrian army was mainly infantrymen of the German Fusiliers, although they had a few Hungarian Fusiliers regiments and two regiments of Hungarian Hussars. The Austrians also had two artillery batteries, both foot 6-lber cannon. All of their units were standardly-trained and were regulars, which General Bittrich saw as an advantage over the French National Guard rabble.

Battle
The battle was opened with an exchange of artillery shots between the French and Austrian artillery, and a brief skirmish between the Austrian Hungarian Hussars and some French Cuirassiers and Chasseurs a Cheval on the French left flank. The French cuirassiers were demoralized after they suffered from friendly fire from their own Chasseurs a Cheval support unit, who fired their pistols as they charged the grapeshot-ridden Hungarian Hussar regiment. The Hussars eventually routed, although the French cavalry suffered additional losses from fire from a regiment of German Fusiliers as they retreated.

Shortly after, the French cannon on the left flank opened fire on the German Fusilier regiment with grapeshot, making sure to fire after the French cavalry passed by. The French left flank was grossly outnumbered, with only two infantry regiments positioned there. The Austrian right flank, which was to attack the French left flank, had at least four German Fusiliers regiments, and also had artillery support. In an amazing show of bravery, the French left flank was able to hold off the Austrian assaults on their embattled regiments, utilizing the shock effect of the grapeshot fire to keep the Coalition forces at bay.

On the French right flank, the German Fusiliers and the two Hungarian Fusilier regiments made their own attacks against the French. They fanned out, hitting the right and the center flanks of the French forces. The central French flank lost one regiment of National Guardsmen when they fled after heavy losses, but they were the only French unit to retreat in the battle. The other regiments, including the strong Grenadiers of Line, held firm and repulsed Austrian attacks. French cannon on the right flank mowed down Austrian troops with grapeshot and the weak National Guard were able to push against the already-weakened Austrian forces.

As the Austrian forces failed to make a breakthrough, the French regiments were able to rout them. Some regiments on both French flanks were able to rout the Austrian regiments in bayonet charges and melee attacks, and the French were able to rout the Austrian army. 4,510 French troops were killed or wounded, while the Austrian army lost 16,260 troops. Most of the Austrian losses were ones who did not return after routing, while the rest were killed or wounded.

Aftermath
The French army was victorious in the battle, with far fewer losses than the Austrians. The Austrian army was routed and the French were able to push on the Rhine River, defeating the Austrian army in several battles afterwards.